Incoming Minnesota freshman Casey Mittelstadt was selected by the Buffalo Sabres with the 8th pick in the NHL Draft Friday night. Mittelstadt becomes the first Gopher selected in the top 10 of the NHL Draft since Kyle Okposo and Eric Johnson in 2006.
Mittelstadt was once thought to be a top 5 pick in the draft, but he did not fair as well as hoped in the physical fitness tests at the NHL Draft Combine in Buffalo a few weeks ago. He will now end up on a Sabres team that features fellow college hockey alum Jack Eichel and former Gopher Hudson Fasching.